Louver



1955 P. c. THOMPSON ETAL 3,217,531

LOUVER Filed July 16, 1965 INVENTORS PRESLEY CARTERTHIOMPSON GLENN IRVING LOGUE ATTORN EY United States Patent 3,217,631 LOUVER Presley Carter Thompson, Cincinnati, Ohio, and Glenn Irving Logue, N. Tarboro, N.C., assignors to Formica Corporation, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Filed July 16, 1963, Ser. No. 295,377 5 Claims. (Cl. 98-121) This invention relates to a louver blade having two legs arranged at acute angles to one another and having, at the apex of the louver, a protrusion extending away from the faces of the louver so as to form in cross-sectional appearance a geometrical figure having the general configuration and outline of a rectangle, and more particularly, of a square. Still further, this invention relates to a louver blade of the type described which has bonded to at least one broad face thereof and preferably to each broad face thereof, a decorative laminate which ends abuts the protrusion. Still further, this invention relates to the louver assembly, which consists of a frame and a plurality of the louver blades.

One of the objects of the present invention is to produce a louver blade which can be utilized in its final state of preparation in a decorative laminate-clad door or other object. A still further object of the present invention is to produce a louver assembly that is composed of a frame and a plurality of the louver blades. These and other objects of the present invention will be discussed in greater detail hereinbelow.

Architectural structures and more particularly, architectural doors, have in more recent years been enhanced in appearance by the application thereto of decorative laminated plastic materials. These doors, clad with the laminated plastic, have many qualities to recommend them for a multitude of commercial and institutional interior applications. Foremost, is the maximum service and wear and the minimum of maintenance. Architects have found further that the clean contemporary lines and color faces of these laminate-clad doors, will take considerable punishment from hands, shoes and elbows and will shrug off the bumps, nicks and scratches with equal case. These laminate-clad doors require no finishing of any kind be fore, during or after installation. Some of these doors are prepared from a solid core, others from a hollow core, still others from a mineral core and for special purposes such as in hospitals, certain of these doors are internally lead lined. If it is desired to put a window in one of these doors, no problem exists, inasmuch as the window, whether clear or stained, will readily adapt itself to the installation. With the growing popularity of air-conditioning systems in buildings, however, it has been found that it is highly desirable to have a louver assembly in certain of these decorative laminate-clad doors in order to provide ready movement of cooled air throughout an air-conditioned building. Ordinary extruded aluminum louvers although serving the purpose functionally, do not serve the purpose from an aesthetic standpoint nor from a practical one. When one of these laminate-clad doors has a rich, wood grain appearance and the louver assembly has a silvery metallic appearance, the contract diminishes from the beautiful appearance of the door and therefore, is less desirable. Even if one were to undertake to paint the metallic louver to the appropriate coloration, a perfect match could not readily be achieved nor could any measure of permanence in the painted louver be attained. For this reason, there is a need for a louver blade and louver assembly that would permit the bonding to the faces thereof of a laminated decorative plastic which could be an exact match of the decorative laminate which was used to clothe the door. The present louver blade ingeniously solves this problem and permits the ice ready application of the decorative laminated plastic to the louver blade in a rapid assembly fashion while still providing a permanent perfect match to the laminate of the door.

The louver blade as viewed in a front elevational view, will have the appearance of a chevron in which legs extend downwardly from the apex at an acute angle to one another although angles up to about could be tolerated.

Reference is made to the accompanying drawing which will enable one to appreciate more fully the concept of the present invention. 7

In FIG. 1 there is shown a front elevational view of the louver blade. FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the louver blade having mounted on the side faces thereof a decorative laminate which may be the same or different from the decorative laminate on the adjoining side face. FIG. 3 is an isometric representation of the louver assembly in which a plurality of the laminated louver blades are ready to be assembled with the frame which is constructed of a head, a sill and two end jambs.

In FIG. 1, 1 represents the side legs of the louver blade, 2 represents the protrusion otherwise identified as an outwardly extending limiting flange extending from the apex of the louver blade so as to form in cross-sectional appearance a geometrical figure having the general outline of a rectangle and more specifically a square, 3 represents an optional thicker part of the leg at the extreme end or foot thereof which is designed to give greater strength to the legs at their extremities for reinforcing purposes. The reinforcement 3 is not necessarily a part of the louver of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of a laminate-clad louver blade in which 1 represents the legs, 2 represents the protrusion at the apex in the general configuration of a rectangle, 3 representsthe optional reinforcement at the foot of the leg 1 and 11 represents the decorative laminate bonded to the broad face of the louver blade.

FIG. 3 is an isometric view of the louver assembly comprising two principal parts, the frame: and the louver blades. The frame is constructed of a top member or head 4, and a base member or sill 5. The assembly is also comprised of the two end members or jambs 6. The jambs are punched out in the shape of a series of chevronshaped slots 7 and have the drill holes 8 which are designed to accommodate the screws 9 which permit the construction of all of the parts into a completed louver assembly. In each of the head 4 and sill 5, there are channels 10 provided for the accommodation of the screws 9 through the holes 8 in order to consolidate the pieces into a unitary structure. On each of the louver blades in FIG. 3, there is shown bonded thereto a decorative laminate 11.

In the assembly the head and sill are cut to the desired width from an extruded channel and the jambs are cut to their selected length also from an extruded channel which has a chevron shaped slot punched at regular intervals in the web of the channel. The frame members are held together by means of self-tapping metal screws. The louver blades are covered with a high pressure decorative laminate bonded by an adhesive to each leg of the louver blade. The ends of the louver blades may be inserted into the chevron slots in the two jamb members and then the entire assembly fastened together by means of the screws 9 through the holes 8 into the receptacles 10.

The louver of the present invention forms a decorative and vision-proof bafiie which will permit the free flow of air from one side of the insert to the other. The louvers may be installed in doors, partitions, walls, and the like in order to permit the flow of air from one side of said constructions to the other. The louvers may be installed or connected to ducts, chambers or plenums which are part of a ventillation system. The area or size of the louver shall be determined by the rate of flow and volume of air as well as by the design and decorative consideration-s. No existing 'materials or assemblies are known which compare with the louver assembly of the present invention, which provide the equivalent features of these high-pressure decorative laminate louvers, that is the color and pattern versatility, low maintenance and elimination of frame flange. Still further, the present invention permits the use of high-pressure decorative laminate louvers which eliminate the problem of deterioration inherent in other conventional materials previously used in louvers, such as steel louvers which have a tendency to rust and wood louvers which have a tendency to warp and/or decay. The color and pattern flexibility affords the first opportunity for the complete integration of louvers into the design and decoration fields while providing an eflicient and functional product.

The decorative laminates of the present invention are a well known commodity commercially available from a plurality of diverse sources. These laminates are generally prepared by heat and pressure consolidating a plurality i.e., about 7 or 8 phenolic resin impregnated sheets over which there is placed a decorative sheet generally impregnated with a thermosetting resin of noble quality such as a melamine formaldehyde resin print sheet, over which is placed a conventional overlay sheet which is generally an alpha-cellulose paper sheet impregnated with a melamine formaldehyde resin. Other decorative laminates may be used for this purpose and no criticality is to be found in this particular type as others will serve equally well. See US Patent No. 3,050,434. The decorative laminate maybe bonded to the face of the louver blade by any one of a number of commercially available adhesive materials including those which are identified as contact cement adhesives.

We claim:

1. A louver blade having two legs arranged at an acute angle and having at the apex thereof, an outwardly extending limiting flange extending away from the faces thereof so as to form, in cross-sectional appearance, a geometrical figure having the general outline of a rectangle wherein the sides of said rectangle adjacent to said legs are substantially at right angles to said legs, said flange forming an abutment for a decorative laminate.

2. A louver blade having two legs arranged at an acute angle and having at the apex thereof, an outwardly extending limiting flange extending away from the faces thereof so as to form in cross-sectional appearance, a geometrical figure having the general outline of a rectangle, a decorative laminate bonded to at least one broad face thereof and which end abuts said flange, wherein the sides of said rectangle adjacent to said legs are substantially at right angles to said legs.

3. A louver blade having two legs arrangedat an acute angle and having at the apex thereof, an outwardly extending limiting flange extending away from the faces thereof so as to form in cross-sectional appearance, a geometrical figure having the general outline of a rectangle, a decorative laminate bonded on each broad face thereof and which end abuts said flange, wherein the sides of said rectangle adjacent to said legs are substantially at right angles to said legs.

4. A louver blade having two legs arranged at an acute angle and having at the apex thereof, an outwardly extending limiting flange extending away from the faces thereof so as to form in cross-sectional appearance, a geometrical figure having the general outline of a square, a decorative laminate bonded to at least one broad face thereof and which end abuts said flange, wherein the sides of said square adjacent to said legs are substantially at right angles to said legs.

5. A louver blade having two legs arranged at an acute angle and having at the apex thereof, an outwardly extending limiting flange extending away from the faces thereof so as to form in cross-sectional appearance, a geometrical figure having the general outline of a square, a decorative laminate bonded on each broad face thereof and which end abuts said flange, wherein the sides of said square adjacent to said legs are substantially at right angles to said legs.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,784,841 12/1930 Landau 98121 2,068,977 1/1937 Dodge 160336 2,074,482 3/1937 Mar-tens l--236 2,987,985 6/1961 Johnson 98-12l WILLIAM F. ODEA, Primary Examiner.

JOHN F. OCONNOR, Examiner. 

1. A LOUVER BLADE HAVING TWO LEGS ARRANGED AT AN ACUTE ANGLE AND HAVING AT THE APEX THEREOF, AN OUTWARDLY EXTENDING LIMITING FLANGE EXTENDING AWAY FROM THE FACES THEREOF SO AS TO FORM, IN CROSS-SECTIONAL APPEARANCE, A GEOMETRICAL FIGURE HAVING THE GENERAL OUTLINE OF A RECTANGLE WHEREIN THE SIDES OF SAID RECTANGLE ADJACENT TO SAID LEGS ARE SUBSTANTIALLY AT RIGHT ANGLES TO SAID LEGS, SAID FLANGE FORMING AN ABUTMENT FOR A DECORATIVE LAMINATE. 